The Philadelphia Eagles have become the new “America’s Team” for the Super Bowl, with many fans rooting for them to beat the Kansas City Chiefs.
While the Eagles have a reputation for having a rowdy fan base and a coach who irritates some people, they are now seen as the team to beat the Chiefs, especially by those who dislike Kansas City for various reasons.
At a theme park in Orlando, a young man wearing a midnight green Saquon Barkley jersey received cheers of “Go Birds!” just two days after the Eagles’ big win over the Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship Game.
Despite having a mix of fans from teams like the Giants, Dolphins, and Patriots, they were all supporting the Eagles against the Chiefs—even though none of them could sing the Eagles’ anthem, “Fly! Eagles! Fly!”
“I hate the Eagles but they’re the lesser of two evils,” said one fan from New York. “Plus, they have Saquon Barkley. We couldn’t even win with him, so I’m happy he’s doing well in Philly. It’s still painful to watch sometimes, but I can’t stand the Chiefs.”
Kansas City is aiming for its fourth Super Bowl victory in five years and trying to be the first team to win three in a row. Many fans are tired of seeing Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce lift the Lombardi Trophy so often, and some feel that the Chiefs get unfairly favorable calls from officials.
A pair of roughing the passer penalties in Kansas City’s game against the Texans and a controversial call in the AFC Championship against Buffalo have fueled this belief.
SiriusXM radio host Adam Schein called the officiating in the Bills-Chiefs game a “disgrace,” and ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky criticized the review of the call as “awful.”
Patriots fans are also frustrated, not wanting Mahomes and coach Andy Reid to get closer to the six championships won by Tom Brady and Bill Belichick in New England. Fans of Brady, the seven-time Super Bowl winner, are annoyed by comparisons between Mahomes and the GOAT since Mahomes has three rings and still needs four more to tie Brady.
Some fans, particularly those who haven’t seen their team win in years, are simply envious of Kansas City’s success. Many of them probably felt the same way about the Patriots when they were dominating.
Additionally, all the commercials with Reid and Mahomes can get on people’s nerves, making them dislike the Chiefs even more. It doesn’t help that former Eagles center Jason Kelce is featured in numerous ads.
Then there’s Travis Kelce’s relationship with Taylor Swift, which has dominated the headlines and distracted from football. Fans complain about seeing the cameras focus on Swift in the stands during games, and although Kelce has gained popularity among Swift’s fans, every celebrity couple has its critics.
All these factors have made the Eagles the fan favorite going into the Super Bowl rematch in New Orleans on Feb. 9. In the last Super Bowl between the two teams, the Chiefs defeated the Eagles 38-35 in Arizona.
As for the Cowboys, who earned the “America’s Team” label in the 1970s, they haven’t made it to a Super Bowl in 29 years.
